My friend and I spent the entire recommended three and a half hours touring the attraction, which is actually about an hour longer than I spent there the first time I went with Mr. Sunny in the summer. She and I just didn’t want to leave!

For this reason, I recommend that you go online and book your tickets before the festivities end on Sunday, January 31, 2016. There are also five other reasons you must go to see Hogwarts in the Snow…

Hogwarts in the Snow- The Great Hall

When the doors open to The Great Hall, you see all the tables decorated in festive food for the holidays.

They are the actual items used for the films. In fact, you learn during the tour that they originally tried using real food for scenes, but after several days of filming they realised that the food was a bit foul.

For a few seconds when you’re in The Great Hall, they light the Christmas pudding on fire. I caught a shot of it in the YouTube video you can see below. Yes, the flames are real.

Christmas trees are in nearly every corner of The Great Hall, and the costumes are spirited too.

Hogwarts in the Snow- Seasonal Sets

Once you finish your time in The Great Hall, you are on your own to explore the sets, costumes and special effects areas of the studio. Several of the film sets have also been adorned with holiday cheer.

Hogwarts in the Snow- See Snow

Once you depart through the snow drifts stationed in Diagon Alley, you can enjoy some Butterbeer in the snow.

In the area outside between the two sound stages where you can find the Knight Bus and Harry’s house on Privet Drive, it is snowing. I did a Periscope broadcast (you can watch on Katch) from this location and quite honestly for a few minutes wasn’t sure if it was real snow or fantasy.

The YouTube video at the end shows the sneaky secret to what’s actually happening in this outside area.

Hogwarts in the Snow- The Christmas Covered Castle

After your journey through the Creatures area and other special effects departments, you have a chance to see several models used for the film.

And that’s when something else starts to happen.

Moving up this corridor, you start to notice the scent of Evergreen filling the air. The gorgeous Christmas smell intensifies as you move up the ramp. Eventually you reach an outlook area where a stunning view of the giant scale model of Hogwarts that was used for filming shots over the school.

The castle is covered in ice effects and snow, which artists added by hand.

It’s easy to spend a whole half of an hour taking pictures and walking around all the levels of the castle. During this time, you’ll notice the lighting change too. The idea is to show guests of Hogwarts in the Snow a serene scene that takes place from sunrise to sunset.

Hogwarts in the Snow- Santa’s List

Once you peel yourself away from the castle, you are directed to a magical wand room. Every actor from the films has a box which keeps his/her wand stored safely.

With that final temptation of being able to leave the muggle world with your own Harry Potter wand, you enter the Gift Shop.

The Harry Potter Merchandise you can buy or put on your Christmas list is endless. My friend made sure to pick up a Christmas ornament for herself as a keepsake from our fun day. I think Mr. Sunny would like this beer tankard. Don’t you?

I received press passes for my visit, but you can learn more about ordering tickets here. This is a holiday event near London that you just don’t want to miss! If you can’t make it to London for the Christmas season, grab a glass of wine or champagne like me, and take a look inside the studio here by watching here…

Have you visited the Harry Potter Studio Tour, Sunny friends? What was your favourite part of the attraction?